Shadow cabinet reshuffle updates

By Mark Ferguson / @markfergusonuk

We all knew the reshuffle was coming – but it’s still caught people by surprise. What we know for certain so far is that John Healey and John Denham have both left the shadow cabinet. Healey has resigned to spend more time with his family – Paul waugh has the letter. John Denham is more of a surprise, especially considering how close he is to Ed Miliband, and how much work he had been doing in the business portfolio in terms of building long term policy.

We’ll be updating this blog throughout this evening and trying to sort fact from fiction.

So far we understand:

- Confirmed: John Denham is taking over as Ed Miliband’s PPS. He’s also stepping down from his Southampton seat at the next election. So what does this mean for Michael Dugher, who only took over as Ed’s PPS a few months ago, replacing Chuka Umunna?

- Denham has been planning to leave the shadow cabinet for months. He had planned to step down at the first shadow cabinet election before they were abolished.

- A number of the 2010 intake will complete a meteoric rise to the shadow cabinet in less than 18 months, planty of names are in the mix but no-one is confirmed yet.

- The reshuffle is said to be “small” – don’t expect too many more changes from what we’ve seen already, but there are certainly some other members of the shadow cabinet who are vulnerable.

- As for rumours that Alan Johnson and Charlie Falconer will be returning to the shadow cabinet – we understand that’s highly unlikely at present.

- All shadow ministers are being called into Ed’s office at the moment (10.50).

- Ivan Lewis is going to the shadow DFID role.that leaves a gap at Culture, but what does that mean for Deputy Leader Harriet Harman?

- Ann McKechin has stepped down from the front bench, replaced by Margaret Curran.

Unconfirmed rumours

- Something few people have picked up on so far is how secure the top end of the shadow cabinet looks. No-one is talking about Balls, Cooper or Alexander being reshuffled, we’d be very surprised if there were any changes there.

- Michael Dugher said to be getting shadow cabinet role without portfolio.

- Jon Trickett – a close ally of Ed -is said to have been given Tessa Jowell’s cabinet office role.

- Burnham to health is now looking very likely.

- Angela Eagle looks like to be moving to take on her own department, with Rachel Reeves looking likely to take on the shadow chief secretary role. Sky are suggesting that Eagle is off to become shadow leader of the house, replacing Hilary Benn, but that’s not confirmed yet.

- Strong rumour: Stephen Twigg to Education – and that’s something lots of other people are hearing too. Expect this to be confirmed soon.

- Amber Elliot from Total Politics (who also broke the Stephen Twigg rumour) says Chuka Umunna is getting shadow BIS.

- If Twigg goes to Education, then the Burnham back to Health sumours ring true. He was one of our shadow cabinet untouchables, so it’s surely upwards or sideways for him.

- Of all of the 2010 intake buzz tonight, we’re hearing Dugher, Kendall and Reeves most regularly linked with promotions.

- Sunny Hundal has suggested that Denham has moved due to an an ideological disagreement with Ed Balls, but we’ve been told that’s not the case.

- The FT Westminster blog seem to be hearing the same rumours as us.

- We don’t know if Meg Hillier is going or not, but we’ve not had confirmation that she’s safe though.

More as we have it.